MONTREAL, Oct. 31, 2015 /CNW/ - Last night in Montreal, JD Promotion & Compétition and Nissan celebrated the inaugural season of the Nissan Micra Cup with a gala event for those involved in making the first season a success – drivers and their teams, the series organizers and staff from Nissan Canada. At the event Christian Meunier, president of Nissan Canada, announced that for the second season, the series will expand to Ontario, growing to eight race weekends, with three of these happening in Ontario and five in Quebec.

"We knew the Nissan Micra Cup was a great idea but the level of excitement and enthusiasm for the series, as well as interest in participating, far exceeded our expectations," said Meunier. "The affordability of the series attracted a diverse group of drivers in the first season, and demonstrated that it's not only a great bridge from karting to car racing, but it's also a series for those who always dreamt of racing. Adding races and expanding to Ontario will attract even more drivers to the series, and will allow us to demonstrate the fun and affordability of Micra to more Canadians!"

With two races each weekend, there will be a total of 16 races over the course of the 2016 season, 10 in Quebec and six in Ontario. For the championship, 12 races for each driver will be included in their personal total. The full race calendar and more specific details for scoring will be announced at a later date.

"The success and interest in the Nissan Micra Cup proved Canadians are hungry for spec series racing and this encouraged us to expand the series next year with more races, but also beyond Quebec's borders, into Ontario," said Jacques Deshaies, owner of JD Promotion & Compétition and the series promoter. "Even before announcing this expansion, we have a number of new drivers interested in participating next year, so we anticipate more cars, and even more excitement, on the track."

The Nissan Micra Cup launched in 2015 as Canada's most affordable racing series, with all the drivers use identical, almost stock Nissan Micra S race cars offering reliability and fun, behind the wheel. Six adrenaline-packed weekends and 12 spectacular races, decided who would be crowned the very first champion in the history of the series. This title was earned by the young Québecker Olivier Bédard, who saw the top of the podium five of the 12 rounds.

Olivier Bédard's exceptional performance in the Micra Cup caught the Canadian motorsport community by storm. The 18-year-old Micra Cup champion was recently bestowed with the prestigious Gilles-Villeneuve Trophy, presented by Auto Sport Québec (the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile's representatives in the region of Québec). Created in 1982, the Gilles-Villeneuve Trophy symbolizes the competitiveness and excellence of a Québec driver on the track, all year long. 2015 winner, Olivier Bédard, follows in the footsteps of other drivers who have marked the history of Canadian motorsport.

"The decision to expand to Ontario is a testament to the efforts of all those involved in Québec – JD Promotion & Compétition, the drivers, their teams, the series organizers, and my own team at Nissan. I congratulate them all on their part in bringing exciting and affordable racing to Canada, and I can't wait to start the 2016 season," concluded Meunier.

More details on the 2016 Micra Cup calendar to come in the winter.

About the Nissan Micra Cup

Sanctioned by Auto Sport Québec (ASQ) and presented by JD Promotion & Compétition with the support of Nissan Canada, the 2015 Nissan Micra Cup exclusively featured the stock Micra 1.6 S M/T model with minor modifications, including NISMO suspension - to render it race-ready.

Unlike most motorsport events, each competing Nissan Micra race vehicle had the exact same specifications, resulting in a competition that truly revealed the most skilled drivers. The 2015 Nissan Micra Cup race vehicles were equipped with the Nissan Micra's stock 1.6-litre DOHC 4-cylinder engine with dual fuel injection and Twin CVTC (Continuously Variable Timing Control) and stock 5-speed manual transmission. More than 25 Nissan Micras competed on each race weekend which included two hours of track time consisting of: a 30-minute trial, a 30-minute qualifying session and two 30-minute races.

Young karting drivers, the average Canadian looking for an entry point into motorsport competition, or anyone who wants to experience the rush of adrenaline inherent with racing cars are all well-suited to this series. In summary, the Nissan Micra Cup is for people who are passionate about motorsports, want to experience all the fun and thrills of racing, but without spending staggering amounts of money.

About the Nissan MicraIn 2014, the Nissan Micra returned to Canada after 23 years as an all-new model, offering Canadians unbeatable value with the lowest starting Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price (MSRP) in Canada at $9,998. One item that sets the 2015 Micra apart is its agility. Micra is easy to drive and park, thanks to excellent all-round visibility and turning radius, electric power steering and a power to weight ratio that surprises. Powering the front-wheel drive Micra is a DOHC 1.6-litre 4-cylinder engine rated at 109 horsepower @ 6,000 rpm and 107 lb-ft. of torque @ 4,400 rpm.

About Nissan Motor Co.Nissan Motor Co., Ltd., Japan's second-largest automotive company, is headquartered in Yokohama, Japan, and is part of the Renault-Nissan Alliance. Operating with more than 247,500 employees globally, Nissan sold 5.32 million vehicles and generated revenue of 11.38 trillion yen (USD 103.6 billion) in fiscal year 2014. Nissan delivers a comprehensive range of more than 60 models under the Nissan, Infiniti and Datsun brands. Nissan leads the world in zero-emission mobility, dominated by sales of the LEAF, the first mass-market, pure-electric vehicle. It is the best-selling EV in history with almost 50% share of the zero-emission vehicle segment.

About Nissan Canada Inc.Nissan Canada Inc. (NCI) is the Canadian sales, marketing and distribution subsidiary of Nissan Motor Limited and Nissan North America, Inc. NCI directly employs 306 full-time staff across offices in Vancouver (BC), Mississauga (ON), and Kirkland (QC). There are 190 independent Nissan dealerships, 38 Infiniti retailers and 45 Nissan Commercial Vehicle dealers across Canada. A pioneer in zero emission mobility, Nissan made history with the introduction of the Nissan LEAF, the first affordable, mass-market, pure-electric vehicle and winner of numerous international accolades including the prestigious 2011 European Car of the Year and World Car of the Year awards.

More information about Nissan in Canada and the complete line of Nissan and Infiniti vehicles can be found online at www.nissan.ca and www.infiniti.ca.